Summer Rain
by yun.firestorm
Summary: A slow jog. A heavy rain. An encounter. An opportunity. A HikaHaru tale.
1. Chapter 1

**Summer rain**

Hikaru breathed in deeper, enjoying the last of summer; feeling himself energized.

It was pretty chilly the night before, but the weather this evening was breezy but not humid, perfect for an evening jog. "Especially since Honey-sempai had invited Kaoru over to his place" he mused.

After lacing up his shoes, he upped the volume of his music player, choosing an upbeat song. Thus starting his run.

Half an hour later, he had turned a few lanes, going into what the Ouran students would have called the "commoner district". He smiled, thinking of his own little commoner.

The wind ruffled his copper locks as he savored the grassy breeze, running hard. Just when he was fully enjoying his run, thunder clapped and dark clouds loomed over the twilight sky and almost immediately, rain started pouring heavily.

Hikaru felt cold pellets touch the back of his neck and cursed under his breath. He ran up to the nearest store, hoping to take shelter there till the rain passes by.

As he stood outside, the gentle wind that was once caressing him turned wilder, hitting him hard. He shivered. He was already drenched by his own sweat, when the rain came, what more the cold wind blowing now.

"The shop's closed today, if not I could've took shelter or rang up home there." The rain continued to fall without mercy as Hikaru mentally kicked himself for not bringing his phone out today. He sighed, feeling his temperature drop, hoping that the rain would cease soon.

Constantly fidgeting about, he was desperately trying to generate some heat from his minute activities. When just then, a familiar flash of brown hair was seen under a yellow umbrella. "H-haruhi!" He called out, voice trembling slightly.

"Hikaru!" the girl turned, brown eyes looking at the drenched figure just beside her, "what're you doing here? You'll get a cold, quick, let's go to my place. At least you can get dry there."

He grinned wryly, grateful. Hikaru snuggled with Haruhi under her umbrella, offering to hold it instead. "Thanks. Sorry." He could feel her body heat from their proximity; he felt a tingle creeping onto his cheeks.

"Why apologise?" she asked, passing the taller boy the umbrella.

He held it as firmly as he could, the other arm around his body trying to retain whatever heat he had left. "Because I stopped you. You were rushing back to hide weren't you?" he managed a small laugh, as he quickened his pace so that they could both get to Haruhi's place soon.

"It's okay." She muttered. He was right, she was rushing home to hide, in fact her heart is beating really rapidly now, desperately hoping that there would not be thunder. "We're almost there."

Haruhi dug out her keys and opened the door fast, ushering Hikaru into the small apartment before locking the door shut.

Dripping a puddle in the middle of the room, Hikaru sneezed, visibly uncomfortable.

"Oh yea," Haruhi, remembering the wet and cold Hikaru swiftly walked to her room. Rummaging through her clothes, she dug out a larger sweater and pants for Hikaru. "Here you go," she passed him the clothing and a dry towel.

He took the items appreciatively and hurried to dry himself with the rough towel. "Anyway, shouldn't you be hiding now?" he chuckled. Eyes widened, Haruhi hearing this merely nodded before quickly dashing off to prepare her comfort zone while Hikaru headed to the bathroom.

"How small," he frowned, taking in his surroundings. "But I don't have much of a choice I guess." As he slipped on the top Haruhi had handed him, he sniggered. "Trust her to buy her clothings 3 times larger..."

At the same time, after tidying up her little refuge center, Haruhi was eagerly climbing into the closet, carefully shutting the door behind her. "Just in time" she thought as a crack resonated through the air almost as soon as she had cupped her ears. She trembled a little in the dark.

Suddenly, the door opened and a ray of light snuck into her safe haven. As she hurriedly reached a hand out to close it, a familiar pair of eyes looked at her, "Move over"

Then, not saying a word, the lad climbed in and sat beside her, shutting the door once he was relatively comfortable. "Thought you might want some company," he beamed, copper hair hanging limply due to the rain.

But before she could reply, another crash came and echoed through her ears. She winced; eyes shut tightly together, hands once again on her ears.

Hikaru sighed. He slipped an arm around the fragile looking girl beside him and pulled her closer to him, resting her head on his chest; wishing that his heart would not betray him to her.

"Thank you," she muttered; comforted by his presence.

His chest tightened and his heart skipped a beat. "You're welcome," he murmured, his heart has betrayed him once more.

* * *

A/N: My second OHSHC fic. And it's yet another quick HikaHaru fic that I'm writing. There's a next chapter and it should be up soon. I'm taking this as a bit of a warm up for my upcoming Kaoru fic. If you enjoyed/disliked it, do leave a comment! Thanks pumpkins! (:


	2. Chapter 2

**After the Rain**

He could hear her heavy breathing despite the heavy pour down. Her cold body snuggled firmly against his chest. She looked so fragile, so delicate. He would have held her tighter, if not for that irrational fear at the back of his head telling him that she might shatter if he did. The floor was cold and damp and he could feel the chilly wind blowing, flickering about his arms. His legs sore from the earlier dash back and the prolonged sitting under the crammed altar. He sighed.

Suddenly, lightning flashed and the thunder resonated throughout the dark and damp little church. She winced.

His stomach twisted, seeing her in such a vulnerable state felt so painful to him. The fact that he left her earlier due to his selfishness made him feel disgusted with himself. He frowned and bit his lower lip hard, an unknown feeling welling up from his chest. _"What is it?"_ he asked.

"_Anger, loath, disgust, disappointment, frustration... No, more, there is something more"_, he remembered himself saying. That nagging, annoying sensation that wouldn't disappear. That pestered him even after the incident and made him feel both happy and sad, disappointment and relief. All because of her.

But at that time, he still didn't know why. Even though he knew that behind all the emotions he felt, that was always something else. That unknown emotion was almost like a spark that drove all those reactions. Still, back then, he has never realize what it was that had amplified all those feelings. Not until much later.

* * *

"Hikaru," Haruhi's muffled voice startled him, "are you alright?"

He looked at her. Beautiful brown puddles staring at him, eager, earnest, sincere. He shook his head. "Just thinking about some things."

"Oh. Urm… Then can you release me? The rain has stopped." she asked, a faint pink crossed her cheeks. "You're holding me pretty tightly. It's a bit uncomfortable"

His hand dropped what it was holding as if it was scalding hot as he grinned wryly "Sorry." He uttered as his brain screamed at him: _No! No! Act normal!_

"It's alright." The brunette pushed open the door of her hideout and gingerly stepped out. "Where's Kaoru anyway?"

The lanky teen gracefully got out of the crammed "room" and started stretching, sore from the prolonged sitting "Honey-sempai invited him over for cake apparently. Kaoru refuses to let me tag along." He said curtly as just a flicker of annoyance appeared on his face.

Then, in a swift motion, he reached for Haruhi, hugging her as he whined, "He said I wasn't invited!"

"Kaoru's angry at me!" he continued_, yes, this is good; take your mind off her, off that bugging feeling. That yearning need for her._

"Don't worry," she ruffled his hair gently, "I'm sure that's not it. Maybe they just have a surprise for you."

He managed a smile. Of course Kaoru didn't hate him. He just wanted to throw her – as well as himself – off a little. But then again, when has calm and sure Haruhi ever panicked?

"Do you want to stay for dinner?" the young girl asked, gently pushing herself free from his grasp. "As thanks for the company just now, besides, Dad's not eating tonight." He smiled, mouthing her his sincere thanks. "But you'll need to go shopping for ingredients with me; I didn't manage to buy them before it rained."

He nodded. Sometime back, he would have immediately rang up Tamaki to tease him about having dinner alone with Haruhi. But now, it was strangely not the one thing he wanted to do. Instead now, all he wanted was some peace with her over dinner.

* * *

A/N: A short update on the story. I cant seem to get it to flow nicely but well, at least after typing this chapter, I think I have more or less figured out how I'm gonna bring this story around. Leave a note pumpkins! And thanks to everyone who has reviewed chapter 1!


	3. Chapter 3

**Winter Frost**

"Do you like mushrooms, Hikaru?" the short girl asked, staring at the pile of brown fungi, plastic bag in hand.

"Sure," Hikaru glanced around the crowded store and smiled wistfully, recalling the last time the Host Club under Tamaki's orders dragged Haruhi here to do some "commoner grocery shopping".

Somehow, despite the short time he's known her for, there has always been a comfortable feeling lingering about when she was around. Chestnut hair tossed and ruffled, shirts that are too large for her petite frame, no makeup, no pretense. She had to be the first girl– no, the _only _girl he knew of who didn't care about how she looked; and this is, despite their differences.

As she would put it, the twins were just rich brats who never had to worry about the necessities of life that most people had to; things like shopping for groceries, cooking, making ends meet – those were things that never occurred to them. Carelessly drifting through life without a care in the world, playing silly pranks, teasing Tono – those were the things they did.

Private, protective, enigmatic, contrary, defensive, childish, afraid.

They were the Hitachiin brothers, Hikaru and Kaoru.

_How long has it been since someone's appearance shook our very existence? Not since that girl back then, from that cold winter day almost 10 years ago. Ever since, that moment in time, our hearts have gradually grew as cold as that winter's snow, crushing all those who wanted to use us without an ounce of sympathy. Confession after confession was torn up, laughter after laughter was erased. We didn't care for the name, the prestige that came with our birth. All we cared for was each other. And perhaps, deep down, merely for someone who could understand us enough to tell us apart. Someone who knows that we are complete as one yet distinctly two._

_It was the last year of Middle School when that silly blonde Tamaki forced his way into our lives._

"_A Host Club!" he'd exclaimed. _

_Who would have thought we would regain – no, find our voice there?_

_Who would have thought that the person we've been waiting for would enter our lives again. _

"I think I've got enough for the two of us." Haruhi mumbled to herself, placing a bottle of maple syrup into their shopping basket. Hikaru snapped out of his trance and glanced into the basket. "Maple syrup?" he inquired, arching a perfectly shaped eyebrow.

"I've noticed that you and Kaoru always pour some over your meal whenever possible, so I figured you guys like it with you food," She answered, simply, her sincerity clear as she stared into his amber eyes. "Or am I mistaken?"

Hikaru shook his head, a smile making itself known on his face. He was somehow glad that Haruhi has noticed things about him, about them. 'Even if it is our strange penchant for maple syrup' he thought wryly.

"Is there anything else you need, Hikaru?" Haruhi asked, glancing at the sashimi platter displayed.

Hikaru frowned, "Haruhi, do you want ootoro? I could take you out for dinner at a restaurant instead, you know? You don't have to cook for me." Haruhi shook her head, opening her mouth to speak.

She hesitated.

"It's okay." She replied, smiling. Then she narrowed her eyes and deadpanned, "Unless you find it impossible to eat all these cheap goods."

Hearing that, Hikaru grinned, his eyes looking gently at her as he reached a hand forward to brush it lightly across her cheek. "Nope, how can I possibly turn down a chance to eat Haru-chan's cooking?"

A tinge of pink rose to her cheeks, and the slightly flustered girl hurried to checkout before he could notice. A wide smile crept onto the host's face, and he casually walked over to join her.

* * *

Honey nibbled on his cake as he stared at the frustrated twin. The younger boy had arranged with the senior about a week ago for some documents to be sent to Honey's house. He had also instructed Honey to "invite him over for cake when they'd arrived". Still, the small blond had been wondering ever since that first mention what was the mail's content. _What kind of information_ w_ould require Kao-chan to be this secretive and… pained? He thought in concern._

"Kao-chan, why did you ask me to invite you over? What's in the letter?" Honey asked, sincere and worried. Running a hand through his wispy copper hair, the twin sighed.

"I asked you because I didn't want Hikaru to find out what I was doing." He glanced down at the ground. "I can't let him know that I'm checking up on Haruhi's background." He stated silently.

"Ehhh!!!" cried the blonde, dropping his fork as he jumped up. "What?! Why!" Mori, silent and calm as always, placed a hand on his friend.

"Mitsukuni," he said softly, looking at him with gentle, yet firm eyes, urging him to let Kaoru continue.

"I need to know." Kaoru muttered, biting his lower lip. "Because I just realized, about a week back." He took a breath, trying to steady himself.

"Haruhi, she resembles that girl from our past, from so long ago; that girl like winter frost."

* * *

A/N: It was my birthday yesterday and so here's my present to all of you. The latest chapter! Tadah! :D Anyway, big Big BIG thank you to Kasshi my beta, she's really wonderful. Makes my work so much easier. My story's skeleton literally got fleshed out. Yes, I usually take eons because my stories take a long time to get enough meat before I am willing to chunk them out. Anyway, thanks to all my readers for reading (dumb statement, but please dont bite me) and if you like VK, go read Kasshi's fics, they're pretty awesome. (:


	4. Chapter 4

"Ehhh?" Honey squealed, hugging his stuffed bunny closer to him. "Who's that? And anyway, Haru-chan is Haru-chan(spring), not anything or anyone else."

The taller boy sighed, eyes shut in exasperation. "Honey-sempai..."

"Mitsukuni," Mori muttered, placing a hand on his chin, eyes looking firmly at the twin. "I dont think Kaoru meant it that way."

Taking it as a prompt to explain, Kaoru continued, "Hikaru and I met Kousaka-san the other day at the country club,"

The younger twin shuffled in his seat, hands nervously fiddling the letter, unsure how to continue.

"She mentioned that Haruhi's mother was a lawyer." he said, dryly.

"Right, but what's wrong with that? Haru-chan had told that to us long ago," the senior was bemused, the lad was to him, behaving all jittery over nothing. Honey nibbled onto another slice of that delectable strawberry chiffon cake.

"Yes," he bit his lower lip and hesitated. "But did she ever mention that her mother was from Ouran, and that she used to bring Haruhi to the park near Ouran's elementary school?"

The ginger's words came out in a frenzy, like a sudden cold wind. The gush forcefully pushed out the relaxed air that was previously around the duo. The blond was nonplussed, swallowing his cake hard. Mori was as always, still a face of calm, though Kaoru could see it in his eyes - both their eyes in fact - that this bit of information was indeed new to them. There was a tense silence in the air as the seniors digested the nugget that was given, uncertain where the twin was leading.

"Well," Mori spoke up, mind clicking puzzles into place, quickly slicing through the sudden tension. "She does stay near the district and that area is part of public grounds."

Kaoru shifted again, uncrossing and crossing his legs. The room remained silent save for the faint sound of fabric rubbing against fabric. "Right."

"But she never went back there after that winter."

"When was that?" Mori asked, his face still expressionless.

Kaoru looked at them for a few moments, an wry expression on his face. Then he spoke, answering them in a voice that they could barely make out. "10 years ago,"

"The same period as when this girl used to come up to us to get us to play with her." He paused, grabbing the glass and swallowing a gulp of water before continuing.

* * *

*I'm sure most of you know this but "haru" is the season spring, so Honey was more or less making a pun on her name.

A/N: I cant believe I'm actually writing this again. I know it was meant to be a short story, but I somehow (as always), dragged on and procrastinated. So here's the 4th chapter, fresh out, short and unbeta-ed, so lets hope it's still relatively alright. Heh. I'll try to churn the rest out quickly. Maybe another 2 more chapters to complete it.


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